Former state rep. Charlie Earl is Ohio's Libertarian candidate for governor

"The libertarian candidate for governor in 2014, whom conservative Tea-Party types may rally around to spite Republican incumbent John Kasich, is a retired college instructor who also has worked in TV and radio.... [Charlie] Earl also is a former Republican state representative. He served from 1981 through 1984.

"'I look around,' Earl said this week in a telephone interview.... 'The governor served with me. The attorney general [Mike DeWine] served with me. Our U.S. senator, Sherrod Brown, served with me. The current speaker of the [Ohio] House of Representatives, Bill Batchelder, served with me.

"Tom Zawistowski, a Tea Party leader from Portage County, said conservative activists like him are sizing up Earl as their best option to make a statement against Kasich in 2014 – even if that means tipping the election to Democrat Ed FitzGerald."